Base Attack On The University

Appondeil is a report from Mr. J. A. Sweezoy, Cliairmaiï of t'b-ú Ciaiuufittco oh Ineorporatious' in the House, uliicli will )e likèiy to excite somt! astooisbnioIR and indignation arnong tlio friends of the University, especially wlien it is considered that be in on tlio republiean ticket as candidato for Regent. Me argües in faror of tho diversión of a poríion of j the Univo'sify fund to i ha support of a hmneopithio department in tlio Agriculturl College. If he were in favor of a homeopathie colkè, or even of such a high and uuhoard of mixture ns liomeopatliy and agriculturc, it would bc no one's cono 'rn tuit !i!s oa'n ; but that he thouid arguo in favor of taking tlie fundsbelonging to the University for tliis pur pose rnay indeed wél) excito asíonishinent, when he ia noiv set up as the special champion of tho University and votes are asjjej for liini that hu may be able to guard its trust?. The report ppcaks for itself. Lot no friend of the University fail to read it: The Cominittee on Banks and Ineorporations to wlioui was ref.;rred a bijl maklng approprianons in aid of tho State Agricultura] College, ai:d the Michigan School of Ilonitsoputhy and Surgery, have had tho same tu j der consideration, aixi ordered their chainnan io report theroon. ]ly act of Congi-flBs, approved January 25, 1836. a large anount of land was :gra.ted to Ij is Statu for the Universitv, Ri:d the . pu.-pose of the grant ïispressed in t!ie?e woids: " to be íppiroprrated soHy for t!i use and snpp'irt of snch Ui .iversity, i) suuh manuer aa tho LegisJature may proscribo," In antioipation of the fuuds to ariso fr;!:n S:ilca of these land.;, tud on tha fleiueof the saaie in payment of pr.ncipal aud interest therefor, the Legislature, by an act approved A prl 6, 1838 loanc'l to tho Uuiversity, the bonds of the State t the ainount of $100,000, to enatt! it to ercet buildings, and procuro o'ber tiposs-iries contcnijilated in the grant, by the terina "for tho use and support of sueh University." By a subsequeiit act of ilie Logialátürk t was providêd that cortain State Sorip, or warranta, miglit be taken in payment for University l.u.ds sok, and tèe aïuouut of stjch sorip credited to the University fan-i to oauoil so mucli of the 100 00Ó dobt. These amounts were creditei to the University, from timo to tiriiBJ as they were p;iid in, and interest at 7 per cent. paid on them to the Recenta, after de ducting the interest oa the $100,000 loan. But tho principa] of the $100,000 loan was liever eharged to tb University; henee, the fu.ll aiuotint of all ftrfltfs re ceived for üiiiversity lauda -old, whether in cash or scrip, now stands to the cn'dit of the Univeriity nd 7 per cent. interest is annually paid thercon by the State; the State liaving also taken up the 8100,000 bonds. by money drawn tVnm tiio gm.ora] fa:.d, or ssucd uow üouds for them. As long as the Treasurer was allowed to dedset from tho University interest fund lbo interest dae on tlw bonds, and only credited to the University tlie surpl'is, tiie institution was not a burthen to 'he Siate. But by a'i act of tho LegUJaiuré, approved Fob. 12, 1853, the State Treas u;-er was direct, d to credit to the Univrrsity tho entire. aniOLint of interest a-ising frorn the silei of University lauds, so that nothing was left ín hi's hands with which to pay the inturest or principal on the bonds, eonsequently , these had to bo paid out of the geheral fand. By subsequent acts of tho Leïislature, to wit : acts of February 10, 18ÓÓ, Feb 5, 1857, and Fcbrüary" 12, 1859, thu Simo direc-tpn was gi?en to the State Treasurer, and thusfir the last ten years, inste;id of dedmting the $100,000 from the University fund and paying interest to the institution on the amount proper ly due, we have paid on the entire smn ; no charge ever ha ving been made for the loan, though not a dollar of it lias ever been paid making in fuct, as is acknowledged by the Regents' report for 1857, an annua! donation uf 37,000 to that in Btitution directly frum the treMsurv, for the last ten years, anioimting in the aggregite, wiih annual interest, to the ntn of over 76,000 00. Now, sirca the lias had the ] 03,000 for the 1,-ist ten ycars without, an amount iti tbe aggregate of principal and interest, if onmputed ammilly, equal to over $176,000 and lias comph-ted substantial, extensivo and comniodiinis buildinjis for all its dopai tmerits and professors, a-nd baa aceuinulated exteiiMve apparatus and i brary, boing 6,000 volumes in 1855. to wliicli has since been ddd over 312,000 worthr and ■ Ims ai, ineomo from itaOwn resources, as appenr by fehu la-t repwt of but 8"6,0Ü0, wliich is coiistcintly increasinar yoarcommlttoo are of opinión t liat, it is not neces sary for tlie welfare nuj support of that inïtilation that the State should any lóngér donato to it the anima! suni of $7,030 as lu'retofore, and being of the opinión that by a doeree of econorüy far less rigid than tliat nquired of the óther colleges and pubiie institutions of the State, the University ean so far reduce BOine of ordinary and extraordinary ex pences as not to be in the lenst enibar rassed, in any of the egsential features of its iisefulnes.-i, by payiiig out of its ampio funds the S7,(K)0 aóriuallj, as the bill now ia question provides. While the amount, thus to be paid by the Univrsitv wip, in our opinión, not Deoessurily einbarrass tlmt ins'.itntion, dow g-rown to a giaut stature, the iii&tot Agnoilliii-al Ooflee just struggliug nto lift), agairiflt meddlosnioe nurses trymjjto etrungle it, wi'l be iniich nourish'ed and revived by even the smill smns proposed to be appliod to its aid Uy ihis bill. By an act spprored Feb 12, 1855, the Loglalature providcj ' that there shall always be at le.istono Professor of Ilouie flpatliy in the depürtmeot of Medicine," in the University. Tliou!] the ilegftnts havo been roquestud and urged by a larse nuniber of the most respectable of our citizens, t esi.ibiiá'i s protexsoriUip, ia obt'dienca to said provisión, tli e-v havo persistently ro fused to do so, claiíBing lo havo powers vested in their body, by tbo constitution, paruruounfc t those of the Legislatura, j ■rolution to the use of the University interest futid, notwithstanding tho aet of Congress granting the lands, oxpressly aeclare it to be " approprtated iu sueh a marnier as tho Legislatura niay pruBoribe." Your committoo does not deoni it essential in this report to express their views in rolation to tho le;;ility or pro priety of the aetion of the Regen ts in relation to this subject, but inasinuoh as there are in this State, as we are informed and1 believe, ji&nrly, if not over j 300 practifioners of tho Homeopathie School, besides a large number of studentg who havo left the State to nttend colleges clsewhcre, for want of oue at home; and knowing that these phyaiciars, in pouit of intelligence and moral worth, will compare favorably with any other class of professional men, and knowing, also, that the 200.000 to 300,000 of our ffllow citizens who believe in and patronize tho Homeopathie praetice are from ammig the most intelligent and respectable propoity hotiiers, we deern it but just and proper that a part of the amount prnvidcd in this bill, should be devoted to instruction in that seienee The Univrrsity having refused to establish and ninintiiin a Prnlesjorship of that School, in dciianco to the mandateg of the Lpgislature, on the grounds that the " Univer?ity Interest Pimd "' was not subject to the control of legislative aetion, cannot, complain of the Hpplioation to that purpo?e, of the funda dm the tafc, tliat never forrned itny part of s;iid fnnd, espneially ag it is to be for Professorships not in contact with their own. In accordanco with th: principies of e.conomy which ehould chiiracterizo the conduct of all our public institutions. this bilí próvidos tliat nnc of tho Protepioj's siiüll perform his somces in both sehoolg, and no pirt of this fund is to be used for the pürehsso of grounds or tho ereptihn of buildh;gsi, these all being fiirnishpd freo of expense to tho Stte. By the fi'-st seotion of this bill, the act obliging the State Treasurer to pay over the full amount; of the Interest Fund, to the Univcr.sity, is repealed, thus Ruspending theannual donation of $7,000 interest heretofore made; and the second section provides for the Trcasurer retaining the amount of interest due on the debt to the State, and for its appli catión to the purposes conteinplated in the bill. Should this bill beeoine a l;w, and the new school be establishod in Lansing, without which no funds would bo ap plied to it, there is no doubt but that nevera! of its Professors majr bucome Professors in both, and be retained for the Asjrieülturai Colleso ddring the sprinir and suimuer mouths and early fall, for a mu h less salary than they pan be procured for where no salary is paid, thus savilig several thousand dollars annuallv of the expenses in the Agricultura] College. In view of all these consideraron1' we report the bill back without amendment, and rqcommend that, it do paslUind ask to be dise.liarjred trom tho furOier consideration of the subject. JAMES A. SWEEZEY, Chairman